Heart-Shaped Strawberry Glaze Cake is the ultimate romantic dessert featuring tender vanilla cake layers baked in heart-shaped pans or trimmed into heart shape, filled with sweet strawberry preserves, and covered in fluffy pink strawberry buttercream frosting that creates stunning presentation perfect for Valentine’s Day, anniversaries, or any celebration of love. This show-stopping cake delivers classic strawberry-vanilla flavor combination that appeals to everyone while the heart shape adds emotional impact that makes recipients feel truly special and cherished. Fresh strawberry slices arranged decoratively across the top add natural beauty and vibrant color while mint leaves provide fresh green contrast that makes the presentation pop. The moist, fine-crumbed vanilla cake provides perfect neutral base that lets sweet-tart strawberry filling and frosting shine, creating balanced flavor profile that’s not overly sweet or artificial-tasting like some strawberry cakes. Each slice reveals beautiful pink-filled layers that look as impressive as they taste, creating Instagram-worthy cross-sections that capture hearts and attention.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This cake is romantic, elegant, and surprisingly doable even if you’re not a professional baker. You can make the heart shape without special pans using the round-and-square cake trick, and the strawberry flavor comes through in every bite thanks to the preserves filling and strawberry buttercream. Freeze-dried strawberries create gorgeous natural pink frosting that stays stable and pipeable (no watery frosting disasters). It’s also a perfect make-ahead dessert—bake the layers early, frost the next day, and serve when you’re ready for a show-stopping Valentine’s moment.
The Science of Strawberry Cake
This cake works so well because vanilla sponge acts like a neutral canvas, letting strawberry flavors shine without competing with strong chocolate notes. Strawberry preserves contain concentrated fruit flavor plus natural thickening from pectin, which helps the filling stay spreadable without soaking into the cake too quickly. For the frosting, freeze-dried strawberries are the real secret: they deliver intense strawberry taste and natural pink color without adding moisture, so the buttercream stays stable. Buttercream itself relies on a stable fat-and-sugar structure, and proper mixing creates a smooth, fluffy texture through emulsification, keeping the frosting creamy instead of greasy or separated.
Ingredients You Need
- All-Purpose Flour: 2½ cups
- Baking Powder: 2½ teaspoons
- Salt: ½ teaspoon
- Unsalted Butter: ¾ cup softened (1½ sticks)
- Granulated Sugar: 1¾ cups
- Eggs: 3 large (room temperature)
- Vanilla Extract: 2 teaspoons
- Whole Milk: 1 cup (room temperature)
- Sour Cream: ½ cup
- Strawberry Preserves: ¾ cup (seedless)
- Unsalted Butter (for frosting): 1 cup softened (2 sticks)
- Powdered Sugar: 4 cups sifted
- Freeze-Dried Strawberries: ½ cup powdered (about 3–4 tbsp)
- Vanilla Extract (for frosting): 1 teaspoon
- Heavy Cream: 2–3 tablespoons
- Salt (for frosting): ¼ teaspoon
- Fresh Strawberries: 8–10 large (for topping)
- Fresh Mint Leaves: for garnish
How to Make It (Step-by-Step)
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour one 9-inch round pan and one 8-inch square pan (for the heart-shape method), or use two heart-shaped pans. Line the bottoms with parchment. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
Step 2: Beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed for 4–5 minutes until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Mix in vanilla and sour cream. Add the dry ingredients and milk alternately (starting and ending with flour) and mix just until combined.
Step 3: Divide batter between pans (slightly more in the square pan). Bake 28–32 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans, then remove and cool completely on wire racks (at least 2 hours).
Step 4: Make the heart shape: cut the round cake in half to create two semicircles. Place the square cake like a diamond (one corner facing you). Attach the two semicircles to the top sides of the diamond to form a heart. Trim gently if needed for smooth curves.
Step 5: Make the strawberry buttercream: powder and sift freeze-dried strawberries. Beat butter for 3 minutes until creamy. Add powdered sugar gradually, then add strawberry powder, vanilla, salt, and 2 tablespoons heavy cream. Beat 3–4 minutes until fluffy. Add more cream if needed.
Step 6: Level cake layers if needed. Spread strawberry preserves between layers. Apply a thin crumb coat of frosting and chill 20 minutes. Frost with final layer, smooth the sides, then decorate with sliced fresh strawberries and mint leaves. Chill until serving, then bring to room temperature for 30 minutes before slicing.
3 Mistakes That Ruin Heart-Shaped Strawberry Glaze Cake
- Using fresh strawberries in the frosting: Fresh berries add too much water and make buttercream runny. Freeze-dried strawberry powder gives strong flavor and pink color without breaking the frosting.
- Not leveling the cake layers: Domed layers make the cake lean and slide. Trim flat tops so your heart cake stacks evenly and looks professional.
- Adding too much filling: Too much preserves causes the layers to slip when you slice. Use a thin, even layer (about ¾ cup total) for perfect structure.
What to Serve with Heart-Shaped Strawberry Glaze Cake
This romantic cake is perfect for an all-pink dessert table. Serve it with 10-Minute Pink Raspberry Mousse Pots, Red Velvet Blizzard-Style Cupcakes, or Easy Red Velvet Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting for a Valentine’s spread that looks coordinated and festive.
FAQ
Heart-Shaped Strawberry Glaze Cake (Perfect Valentine’s Dessert)
Method
- Step 1: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour one 9-inch round pan and one 8-inch square pan (for the heart-shape method), or use two heart-shaped pans. Line the bottoms with parchment. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside.Step 2: Beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed for 4–5 minutes until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Mix in vanilla and sour cream. Add the dry ingredients and milk alternately (starting and ending with flour) and mix just until combined.Step 3: Divide batter between pans (slightly more in the square pan). Bake 28–32 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans, then remove and cool completely on wire racks (at least 2 hours).Step 4: Make the heart shape: cut the round cake in half to create two semicircles. Place the square cake like a diamond (one corner facing you). Attach the two semicircles to the top sides of the diamond to form a heart. Trim gently if needed for smooth curves.Step 5: Make the strawberry buttercream: powder and sift freeze-dried strawberries. Beat butter for 3 minutes until creamy. Add powdered sugar gradually, then add strawberry powder, vanilla, salt, and 2 tablespoons heavy cream. Beat 3–4 minutes until fluffy. Add more cream if needed.Step 6: Level cake layers if needed. Spread strawberry preserves between layers. Apply a thin crumb coat of frosting and chill 20 minutes. Frost with final layer, smooth the sides, then decorate with sliced fresh strawberries and mint leaves. Chill until serving, then bring to room temperature for 30 minutes before slicing.
Notes
